Failure to end dharna: IHC issues contempt notice to Interior Minister

ISLAMABAD: The  Islamabad High Court (IHC) on Friday  issued contempt of court notice to Interior Minister Ahsan Iqbal  for his  failure to disperse the protesters who has been staging a sit-in at the Faizabad Interchange for  19 days.

The  hearing  has been   adjourned till November 28 after Justice Shaukat Aziz Siddiqui ordered the authorities to shift the protesters to Parade Ground within three days.

The judge said he  would not allow  shooting at the protesters but  half of them could be dispersed with the use of a couple of tear gas shells.

 Islamabad Commissioner told the court that the government has stopped the local authorities from taking action against  the protesters .

He said the interior minister has also informed the court that he stopped the  local administration  in order  to hold talks with the protesters.

Justice Siddiqui said it was beyond his  comprehension that how a prime minister let alone a minister would  go against court orders .

The judge asked under what authority the interior minister stopped  the local administration from complying with the court orders.

The interior secretary said the use of unnecessary force can lead to a bloodshed.

The protesters belonging to religious parties — Tehreek-i-Khatm-i-Nabuwwat, Tehreek-i-Labaik Pakistan (TLP) and the Sunni Tehreek Pakistan (ST) —are calling for the sacking of Law Minister Zahid Hamid and strict action against those behind the amendment to the Khatm-i-Nabuwwat oath in the Elections Act 2017. 

The amendment had earlier been deemed a ‘clerical error’ and has already been rectified.

The protesters had occupied the Faizabad Bridge which connects Rawalpindi and Islamabad through the Islamabad Expressway and Murree Road, both of which are the busiest roads in the twin cities.